Happy Hoppers Newsletter #2
09/19/2011
From Steve and Susan:
Once again, welcome to one and all! It was great to see all of you Monday night.
One of the pleasures of learning to square dance is that you can then dance anywhere. In the next few weeks we will be talking more and more about attending square dances at other clubs, New Dancer Dances or Student Level Dances. We will talk about what and where they are on Monday night. Please put the dates for the October dances on your calendar and plan to come.
Friday, October 7, 7:30 – 10:30 p.m. First Friday Fun Fest hosted by the Whirlybirds at the Hayloft in Lynnwood; Dave Harry, calling.
Friday, October 28, 7:30 – 10:30 p.m. Super Heroes and Villains Halloween Dance hosted by the Samena Squares at the Juanita Community Club in Kirkland; Susan Morris, calling. Costumes encouraged.
Sunday, October 30, 7 – 10 p.m. “Halloween” Student Level Dance hosted by the Freewheelers at the Lake City Community Club, Seattle; Dennis Webb, calling. Halloween costume contest.
The Happy Hoppers are a square dance club. The club is part of the Mt. Baker Square Dance Council, which is an organization of square and round dance clubs. The geographic area served by the Council is from a bit south of the King County line up to the Canadian border and from the Cascades to Whidbey Island. The Council is one of many councils that comprise the State Square Dance Federation. The official name is the Square and Folk Dance Federation of Washington.
Each organization has a web site that has lots of information.
Happy Hoppers – http://happyhoppers.org/
Mt. Baker Square Dance Council – http://www.sqdance.org/
Square and Folk Dance Federation of Washington – http://www.squaredance-wa.org/
I, also, have a web site – http://callersusan.com/ One of the things that I have on my site is a tab for Hopper’s New Dancers. There you will find all of these email newsletters. So if you lose yours you can find a copy there.
Don’t forget that next week is the last open enrollment week. Feel free to bring friends, family, co-workers, etc. to class.
Happy dancing,
Susan (Morris) and Steve (Noseck)
Week #2:
Dancer naming:
i, Couple: Two people standing side by side; for universal understanding of square dance commands the dancer on the left dances the boy/man part of commands, the dancer on the right dances the girl/lady part of commands.
ii. Heads, Sides, Couple Numbers: Head couples have their back to or face the caller/music; Sides are the other two couples; Couple numbers – #1 back to caller, #2 to their right, #3 to the right of #2 or face the caller, #4 to the right of #3.
iii. Boys, Girls: Actual Boys and Girls or those dancing the Boy/Girl part of the move.
1. Circle Left & Right: Join hands in a circle and move left or right as indicated; circles can be made with 2 or more people. CIRCLE LEFT & RIGHT – 8 dancers full around, 16 steps; 4 dancers full around, 8 steps.
2. Forward & Back: In a squared set for heads or sides, it is 3 steps and touch then back 3 steps. FORWARD & BACK – 8 steps.
3 a. Dosado: With person you are facing, step slightly left, walk forward to pass right shoulders, slide back to back, back up past left shoulder, slide to face to face start position. DOSADO – with corner/partner 6 steps, across square – 8 steps.
4. Swing: Dancers step toward each other in ballroom dance position; leaning back slightly, walk around each other; the boy ends facing the direction of the next call; the girl rolls out to dance position on his right side. SWING – 4-8 steps at Callers discretion.
5. Promenade Family:
5 a. Couples: With partner walk together counter-clockwise to home position; right hands joined over joined left hands. PROMENADE – couples full around 16 steps.
5 b. Single File Promenade: Specified dancers walk single file counterclockwise inside the square or where indicated by the caller. SINGLE FILE PROMENADE – 4 dancers inside to home – 8 steps.
6. Allemande Left: Turn toward corner, left arm turn 180 degrees, let go and step through, end back to back with corner, facing partner. ALLEMANDE LEFT – 8 steps.
8. Right and Left Grand Family:
8 a. Right & Left Grand: Start facing partner, take right hands, walk by, offer left hand to next, walk by; continue alternating hands to the 5th hand (should be the dancer you started with). Boys are going counterclockwise; girls are going clockwise. RIGHT & LEFT GRAND – 10 steps.
9. Left/Right Hand Star: Indicated dancers step to the center of the formation to join the designated hand in a loose star; walk forward to starting position of next call. It is often a full turn but can be fractionalized. LEFT/ RIGHT HAND STAR – 4 dancers full around 8 steps.
10. Pass Thru: With person you are facing step ahead passing right shoulders. STOP as soon as you pass by. End back to back. Same as 1/2 DOSADO. PASS THRU – 2 steps.
12. Turn Back Family:
12 a. ‘U’-Turn back: One of the self-explanatory calls, turn around in place to face opposite direction. If you have a partner beside you it is friendlier and nicer to turn toward your partner, sometimes this is left and sometimes it is right. ‘U’-TURN BACK – 2 steps.
15. Courtesy Turn: Girls (or right hand dancer) sticks out left hand in front palm down; Boys (or left hand dancer) offers left hand palm up to girl, place right hand on the small of her back; gently guide her forward, while backing up, turning as a couple to face opposite direction or the center of the set. COURTESY TURN – 4 steps.
16. Ladies Chain Family:
16 a. Two & Four Ladies Chain: Two (or four) girls step toward the center to make a right hand star; turn 1/2 way; offer left hand to opposite boy for a COURTESY TURN; end as couple facing center of formation. While girls are staring the boys take a step to their right to be in correct position for COURTESY TURN. TWO & FOUR LADIES CHAIN – 8 steps.
18. Lead Right: Directed couples (Heads, Sides), with a couple handhold, will walk forward as a couple to face the couple to the right. LEAD RIGHT – 4 steps
19. Veer Left/Right: Moving as a couple, slide left or right as directed, maintaining facing direction with a small forward motion as well. VEER LEFT/RIGHT – 2 steps.
20. Bend The Line: Couples, as a unit, turn 90 degrees to face center. Like folding a piece of paper. Each end moves forward to meet the other end. The centers need to back up a little to accommodate. This creates new lines facing in. As a couple, you will ALWAYS be facing the other couple that was in your line. BEND THE LINE – 4 steps.
23. Grand Square: (32 beats of music) Each individual dancer tracks the four sides of a square in their quadrant on the floor. If you are toes-to-toes start by backing up; if you are far apart start by walking forward. Command is “Sides Face, Grand Square.” GRAND SQUARE – 32 steps.
Once again, welcome to one and all! It was great to see all of you Monday night.
One of the pleasures of learning to square dance is that you can then dance anywhere. In the next few weeks we will be talking more and more about attending square dances at other clubs, New Dancer Dances or Student Level Dances. We will talk about what and where they are on Monday night. Please put the dates for the October dances on your calendar and plan to come.
Friday, October 7, 7:30 – 10:30 p.m. First Friday Fun Fest hosted by the Whirlybirds at the Hayloft in Lynnwood; Dave Harry, calling.
Friday, October 28, 7:30 – 10:30 p.m. Super Heroes and Villains Halloween Dance hosted by the Samena Squares at the Juanita Community Club in Kirkland; Susan Morris, calling. Costumes encouraged.
Sunday, October 30, 7 – 10 p.m. “Halloween” Student Level Dance hosted by the Freewheelers at the Lake City Community Club, Seattle; Dennis Webb, calling. Halloween costume contest.
The Happy Hoppers are a square dance club. The club is part of the Mt. Baker Square Dance Council, which is an organization of square and round dance clubs. The geographic area served by the Council is from a bit south of the King County line up to the Canadian border and from the Cascades to Whidbey Island. The Council is one of many councils that comprise the State Square Dance Federation. The official name is the Square and Folk Dance Federation of Washington.
Each organization has a web site that has lots of information.
Happy Hoppers – http://happyhoppers.org/
Mt. Baker Square Dance Council – http://www.sqdance.org/
Square and Folk Dance Federation of Washington – http://www.squaredance-wa.org/
I, also, have a web site – http://callersusan.com/ One of the things that I have on my site is a tab for Hopper’s New Dancers. There you will find all of these email newsletters. So if you lose yours you can find a copy there.
Don’t forget that next week is the last open enrollment week. Feel free to bring friends, family, co-workers, etc. to class.
Happy dancing,
Susan (Morris) and Steve (Noseck)
Week #2:
Dancer naming:
i, Couple: Two people standing side by side; for universal understanding of square dance commands the dancer on the left dances the boy/man part of commands, the dancer on the right dances the girl/lady part of commands.
ii. Heads, Sides, Couple Numbers: Head couples have their back to or face the caller/music; Sides are the other two couples; Couple numbers – #1 back to caller, #2 to their right, #3 to the right of #2 or face the caller, #4 to the right of #3.
iii. Boys, Girls: Actual Boys and Girls or those dancing the Boy/Girl part of the move.
1. Circle Left & Right: Join hands in a circle and move left or right as indicated; circles can be made with 2 or more people. CIRCLE LEFT & RIGHT – 8 dancers full around, 16 steps; 4 dancers full around, 8 steps.
2. Forward & Back: In a squared set for heads or sides, it is 3 steps and touch then back 3 steps. FORWARD & BACK – 8 steps.
3 a. Dosado: With person you are facing, step slightly left, walk forward to pass right shoulders, slide back to back, back up past left shoulder, slide to face to face start position. DOSADO – with corner/partner 6 steps, across square – 8 steps.
4. Swing: Dancers step toward each other in ballroom dance position; leaning back slightly, walk around each other; the boy ends facing the direction of the next call; the girl rolls out to dance position on his right side. SWING – 4-8 steps at Callers discretion.
5. Promenade Family:
5 a. Couples: With partner walk together counter-clockwise to home position; right hands joined over joined left hands. PROMENADE – couples full around 16 steps.
5 b. Single File Promenade: Specified dancers walk single file counterclockwise inside the square or where indicated by the caller. SINGLE FILE PROMENADE – 4 dancers inside to home – 8 steps.
6. Allemande Left: Turn toward corner, left arm turn 180 degrees, let go and step through, end back to back with corner, facing partner. ALLEMANDE LEFT – 8 steps.
8. Right and Left Grand Family:
8 a. Right & Left Grand: Start facing partner, take right hands, walk by, offer left hand to next, walk by; continue alternating hands to the 5th hand (should be the dancer you started with). Boys are going counterclockwise; girls are going clockwise. RIGHT & LEFT GRAND – 10 steps.
9. Left/Right Hand Star: Indicated dancers step to the center of the formation to join the designated hand in a loose star; walk forward to starting position of next call. It is often a full turn but can be fractionalized. LEFT/ RIGHT HAND STAR – 4 dancers full around 8 steps.
10. Pass Thru: With person you are facing step ahead passing right shoulders. STOP as soon as you pass by. End back to back. Same as 1/2 DOSADO. PASS THRU – 2 steps.
12. Turn Back Family:
12 a. ‘U’-Turn back: One of the self-explanatory calls, turn around in place to face opposite direction. If you have a partner beside you it is friendlier and nicer to turn toward your partner, sometimes this is left and sometimes it is right. ‘U’-TURN BACK – 2 steps.
15. Courtesy Turn: Girls (or right hand dancer) sticks out left hand in front palm down; Boys (or left hand dancer) offers left hand palm up to girl, place right hand on the small of her back; gently guide her forward, while backing up, turning as a couple to face opposite direction or the center of the set. COURTESY TURN – 4 steps.
16. Ladies Chain Family:
16 a. Two & Four Ladies Chain: Two (or four) girls step toward the center to make a right hand star; turn 1/2 way; offer left hand to opposite boy for a COURTESY TURN; end as couple facing center of formation. While girls are staring the boys take a step to their right to be in correct position for COURTESY TURN. TWO & FOUR LADIES CHAIN – 8 steps.
18. Lead Right: Directed couples (Heads, Sides), with a couple handhold, will walk forward as a couple to face the couple to the right. LEAD RIGHT – 4 steps
19. Veer Left/Right: Moving as a couple, slide left or right as directed, maintaining facing direction with a small forward motion as well. VEER LEFT/RIGHT – 2 steps.
20. Bend The Line: Couples, as a unit, turn 90 degrees to face center. Like folding a piece of paper. Each end moves forward to meet the other end. The centers need to back up a little to accommodate. This creates new lines facing in. As a couple, you will ALWAYS be facing the other couple that was in your line. BEND THE LINE – 4 steps.
23. Grand Square: (32 beats of music) Each individual dancer tracks the four sides of a square in their quadrant on the floor. If you are toes-to-toes start by backing up; if you are far apart start by walking forward. Command is “Sides Face, Grand Square.” GRAND SQUARE – 32 steps.